The Eye Of The Past
"Tradition Speaks"
A monthly chronicle featuring past Big Red players and coaches remembering their time beneath the Crimson & the Black.
Volume 2: Jeff Grill, 1989, 90, & 91.
"The Eye Of The Past is a fraternity, a collection of individuals who have given a piece of themselves to Big Red. It includes coaches and players, but also administrators, faculty, boosters, support staff, and their respective families. The main commonality amongst this group is their passion and pride for the program.
Every year, a new Big Red team has a duty to not only uphold the tradition already in place, but also to add its own legacy. The 1991 team was no different, and prides itself on achieving this goal. Although, the 1991 team went 10-0, it is difficult to pin-point one game, one play, or one moment when this was realized. However, it is obvious why it occurred. The class of 1991 was blessed. Long before any of us stepped onto the field, we were the Eyes Of The Future.
During the mid 1980's, the Big Red players and coaches may not have realized the example they were setting for an assortment of junior high students, although we watched intently. We quickly learned the expectation levels were undeniably high. Even at that young age we perceived ourselves assuming the roles of these successful players.
Fortunately, a fine collection of coaches were in place when we officially became members of the program at Harding Middle School. The training and lessons learned were invaluable. Unfortunately, you're not able to control your physical dimensions, but you do determine your work-ethic. The mentality to not be outworked applied in our athletic training, and in the classroom.
This ideology was imbedded at the middle school level and implemented throughout our high school days. Coach Sac and his staff excel at maximizing the potential of its student-athletes. Each team is pushed beyond its imaginable limits. Since each member is working towards the common goal of becoming a team, and a family.
During our playing days, teammates supported and pushed one another. Coaches provided guidance, and motivation. After our playing days concluded, those same individuals are equally as important. Without question, a special connection is shared for life. We continue to be friends, teammates, and family.
It is a privilege to be a part of Big Red Football. With this honor comes a large responsibility. It is the obligation of each year's team to conduct themselves in the classroom, on the field, and in the community, in a manner that will make the Eye Of The Past proud, and set the example for the Eyes Of The Future.
Volume 1: Doug Charland, 1985, 86, & 87.
"In 1987, we thought we had a really good team going into the season. The 10-1 1986 team had far more juniors starting than seniors. The whole offensive backfield, Todd Christian at tight end, me at tackle, Jason Rinaldo split time at center, Niles Herring at reciever. On defense me, Hans Yetts, Jimmy Kelley, Dan Keenan, and one or two others. Then during the summer Chez Jennings transferred, and he was big and quick, plus John Lytle came back on the team. So we figured we were gonna be pretty good.
I think perhaps we thought a little too much about how good we might be, because we were somewhat lack-luster in the first game of the season against Cleveland South. In the second game we had to travel to Warren Harding. They were not supposed to be great that season, and we had beaten them the year before. I was not dressed for the game because of the knee surgery that kept me out of the first 6 games of the season, and I was always in the training room for half of practice, but I don't remember practice being overly sharp or intense that week. Well it showed on Friday night. We missed several tackles and did not run the ball nearly as well as we should have. We lost 12-21, and if Lytle hadnt run an interception back 90 yards for a TD it might have been worse.
Usually in the locker room after a loss you are kind of in a daze and you only hear half of what a coach says, especially if he's screaming. Having not been dressed for the game though, and standing there on crutches, I was paying more attention than I normally would have though. It was a few seconds before Reno said anything. He paced back and forth maybe three or four times, and it looked as if he was going to explode. Most of the guys in there probably just wanted to get showered and get the hell home, but I was worried about what was about to happen. I knew if he flew off the handle, as we all fully expected, and happen to do it in my direction, I wouldn't be able to get out of the way fast enough! LOL His pacing was not fully under contol, it was nervous and almost frantic. What came out kinda suprised me.
"WE NEEDED THAT!!! WE NEEDED THAT!!! He smacked himself on the forehead several times, hard enough that I thought he might hurt himself. Obviously he couldn't hurt himself. He reminds me of the Black Night in Monty Python's "Holy Grail", who gets his legs and arms chopped off but keeps on fighting and insists "Ok, we'll call it a draw!"
"WE'RE NOT AS GOOD AS WE THINK WE ARE!!!" He went off for a few more minutes, very colorfully, about our shortcomings as a team, and after a while I started to think "You know he's right. We're really not that good!" Now I don't know if the other guys were thinking the same thing, but looking back I realize that that's EXACTLY what he wanted us to believe. We (Big Red) were still somewhat new to being a state powerhouse. We had the '84 state championship, but then the '85 team underachieved, and the '86 team somehow went 10-0 before losing in the first round of the playoffs, despite not really being that good. But we didn't, at that point, have quite the confidence withing the program from top to bottom that is there now. We were still in the stages of building that. So were we really not that good???
Obviously we were better than he made us feel like we were that night because we won the rest of our games, including the final, and perhaps most memorable, game in the Wintersville rivalry, until losing to an awesome Akron Buchtel team in the state championship game. But to this day I think that he was right. We DID need that loss. And I also wonder if somewhere inside he was happy that we lost that game, because I'm not so sure that we would have made it as far as we did if we hadn't gotten that harsh dose of reality, and gotten it so early in the season when there was still time to recover.
He was right.........'WE NEEDED THAT!!!"
Editor's note: Mr. Charland was a two year starter at tackle and defensive tackle, as well as punter, for the Red, and was a 3 year letterman. He earned a scholarship to the University of Maryland where he played 4 years for the Terps. Mr. Charland currently is self-employed and resides in Laural Maryland.
